Whale Oil Uses

candles (first made from sperm head oil in 1750+ in Newport by Jacob Rodriguez Rivera)

watch oil (at $5.00 per ounce in 1957!)

additives in motor oils

automatic transmission fluid

lubricant for delicate high altitude instruments

glycerine

cosmetics ("imparts a rich glossy sheen")

rust-proofing compounds

chemical fibers

detergent

vitamins

glaze (on photographs)

70+ pharmaceutical compounds

A

1957 article in the Peruvian Times summed up a lot of uses for whale oil. One was: "It has a high film strength and loosens a rusted nut on a bolt in seconds". The oil doesn't dry out or turn rancid. Sperm oil lubricates textile fibers to prevent unraveling when they are twisted into threads. There were hundreds more of seemingly small but important uses.

Profile of an adult male sperm whale. A sperm whale having a length of 45 feet is near to the upper limit for the species. The head makes up almost one-third of the length, disregarding the tail.